The new sensor boasts 48 effective megapixels which the Japanese manufacturer is labelling the “highest pixel count” in the industry.
Sony emphasised the need to bring “greater imaging quality” to smartphone cameras and insisted its new technology rivals “high-performance SLR cameras”.
It believes the new complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) IMX586 sensor, capable of delivering an image resolution of 8000 x 6000, will achieve that.
Sony is labelling the new unit “compact” – it measures up at 8millimetres diagonally, meaning phones that adopt it should not have to carry a huge camera bump.
In a blog post, the company went on: “These days, high-end smartphone models require even greater imaging quality from their cameras.
“The new Sony sensor features 48 effective megapixels, a pixel count which rivals that of high-performance SLR cameras, making it possible to capture beautiful, high-resolution images even with a smartphone.
“In addition to these advantages, original Sony exposure control technology and signal processing functionality are built into the image sensor, enabling real-time output and a superior dynamic range four times greater than conventional units.
“Even scenes with both bright and dark areas can be captured with minimal highlight blowout or loss of detail in shadows.”
The company also declared the increased amount of pixels provided by the new sensor means “high-definition” images can be captured even with phones that use a digital zoom.
To demonstrate the capabilities of the new sensor, the company posted an image of a cruise ship and compared the levels of detail between a 12 effective megapixel image and Sony’s latest technology.
When both images are zoomed in the differences between the new sensor and older technology is night and day.
Greater levels of detail are kept, the image is not washed out and there is not much grain.
The new camera technology should arrive on smartphones next year, meaning Sony’s 2019 line of Xperia phones could be set for a major sensor upgrade.
However, this does mean the company’s newest flagship set for release next month, the Xperia XZ3, is set to miss out.